Vesak is known as the day of our historical Buddha, being the day of his birth, enlightenment and demise (parinibbāna). The 3 events occurred on the full moon day of Visākha month of different years.
According to Pali commentaries, it is remarkable that the enlightenment of all Buddhas occurred on full moon days, albeit of different months. If this is true, there must be a mysterious relation between the moon and potential human spiritual realisation. This seems relevant to what I heard from P’ Poom, a senior colleague, on Maghapuja day of the year 1994.
As I remember it: on that day, I worked whole day - as a voluntary staff member of the donation section - in service of a big but peaceful mass of people who came to join the activities at Wat Phra Dhammakaya, Thailand. From 6 am to 9 pm (15 hours in total), I had neither a drop of drinking water nor a mouthful of food. Nor did I have sometimes to go to washroom or whatsoever. On a number of occasions, our young volunteers brought foods and drinks for me. But I just had no time to eat or drink it and then they had to take the food back. Nevertheless, I didn’t feel any tiredness, hunger or even thirst. My day was filled with peace and joy, working while witnessing a big, bright & clear crystal sphere covering myself. Probably it was the power of dhamma that provided me such comfort and strength, adding up to my young age at that time which made me not to be tired easily.
Around 9 pm when we finished wrapping up our work, P’ Poom and I went to the area where the Magha candle lighting took place. Knowing we were too late for the candle lighting ceremony, we went there just wanting to see the Magha candles filling up the whole area. The line of Magha candles lid in buddhapūjā looked beautiful and cheerful.
We looked up to the sky and saw the bright full moon surrounded with haloes. Then P’ Poom told me what she heard from our master: Whenever the moon is surrounded with haloes, it means more Boons (Pali 'puñña', Sanskrit 'punya') can be transmitted to us and that will be a good time for meditation. Let’s take such an opportunity. Don’t let it go uselessly.
The tale implies the relation of the power of the moon and human potential spiritual development. Superficially, this appears contradictory to the Buddha’s suggestion to not depend on auspicious occasions:
nakkhattaṃ paṭimānentaṃ attho bālaṃ upaccagā
attho atthassa nakkhattaṃ kiṃ karissanti tārakā.
However, it may be understood that indeed the Buddha does not refuse the existence of such mysterious relation. He only refuses the dependence on it, for human’s effort can bring success even beyond the control of nature. Therefore, the auspicious occasions could be seen as being accessories, but not necessities, to human success and the tale indeed does not contradict the Buddha’s teaching. Every Buddha must have tried his best for the bodhi, relying on his own strength without depending on such propitiousness. But the success comes at the right time when all conditions, including his human power, are fulfilled. Interestingly, such the right time is always a full moon day!
In any case, it may be better not to judge things too confidently only according to intellectual perception, as something can be beyond our imagination, expectation or reasoning. Personally, I think we need not always judge everything we encounter and don’t have to try too hard to understand something which is beyond our common understanding. Pali texts define such matters which are beyond normal human reasoning as 'acinteyya' or 'unthinkable matters', as they can bring madness to serious thinkers who try too hard to figure them out without supernatural wisdom.
Leaving something undetermined can allow us some space to be free from discursive thought. Hence, the mind which is empty from mentations and expectations can be at peace easily. Finally it can be the opportunity for us to direct the still, peaceful, and workable mind to seeing and knowing the true nature of things as they really are. It is the way our great Buddhas developed superhuman wisdom and found the answers to all unanswerable questions.
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